“We’re responding with great force, but not after civilians,” Netanyahu said when asked by press what Israel’s response would be to the Iranian attacks.
(photo credit: GPO/AVI OHAYON)
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called on world leaders to join the US-Israeli operation against Iran, as he and numerous other Israeli officials visited the impact site of an Iranian missile attack in the southern city of Arad on Sunday.
“If you want proof that Iran endangers the entire world, the last 48 hours have proved it,” he said.
“They fired on Jerusalem right next to the holy sites of the three monotheistic faiths.”
“They have the capacity to reach deep into Europe,” he warned. “They are putting everyone in their sights,” he continued.
“It’s time to see the leaders of the rest of the countries join up,” he added. “I’m happy to see that some of them are moving in that direction, but more is needed.”
The Iranian missile attack on Saturday wounded dozens of people and caused serious destruction to the area in Arad.
“We’re responding with great force, but not after civilians,” Netanyahu said when asked by the press what Israel’s response would be to the Iranian attacks.
The prime minister said it was “a miracle” that no one was killed in the missile attack in Arad.
Netanyahu: ‘Do not be complacent, do not be indifferent’
“I ask the citizens of Israel to enter protected spaces. Do not be complacent, do not be indifferent. The entire nation is a front, and the entire home front is a front, and in this struggle, we are winning, we are crushing the enemy,” Netanyahu said.
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich vowed at the site that those impacted by the hit would receive assistance for the damage.
He said that he instructed the Property Tax Authority to reduce the bureaucracy needed to assist.
“I have instructed the Property Tax Authority and the Tax Authority officials here on the ground to act with minimal bureaucracy and maximum sensitivity and efficiency,” Smortich said.
“No family whose home was damaged will be left without a response. The state will stand behind you and restore every wall and every window that was damaged, so that you can return to routine as quickly as possible,” he added.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said at the site that the hit was “clearly” a war crime.
“The Iranian regime is launching missiles at civilians as a strategy. This is a strategy of war crimes.”
“You can see a completely civilian neighborhood, with no military aspect whatsoever, that was struck. The Iranian regime is targeting only civilians and the civilian population,” he said.
“We had here, actually, a miracle. Seeing the destruction all around, the number of casualties was relatively low.”
“All of these attacks have no military meaning or significance whatsoever. The sole purpose, the only objective, is to harm as many civilians as possible,” Sa’ar added.
Other ministers also visited the site, including Defense Minister Israel Katz, Education Minister Yoav Kisch, and Transportation Minister Miri Regev.
President Isaac Herzog arrived at the scene. In his remarks, he said that the war is “a process and it will soon be over. We will get through this.”
Opposition politicians also came to the scene of the missile impact.
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett said there that Iran had lied about its nuclear program and warned that it was a threat to Europe too.
“Just as they lied about the missiles, so too they lied about the nuclear issue. If we had not acted now, within a short time all of Europe would have been under an Iranian nuclear umbrella,” Bennett said.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid said that the site in Arad is “a difficult scene that shows the work is not yet finished. Iran has ballistic missiles and the capability to strike Israeli civilians.”
“One of the objectives of this war has been defined as eliminating all of Iran’s ballistic capabilities, and we cannot stop until that happens.”
Lapid also noted that the government should stop “wasting billions on coalition-related spending [which] should instead be sent to Soroka [Medical Center] and to the rehabilitation of the South.”
As reported by The Jerusalem Post